Given a list of scalars or reference variables, writes out their contents in perl syntax. The references can also be objects. The content of each variable is output in a single Perl statement. Handles self-referential structures correctly.

The return value can be "eval"ed to get back an identical copy of the original reference structure.

Any references that are the same as one of those passed in will be named $VAR*n* (where *n* is a numeric suffix), and other duplicate references to substructures within $VAR*n* will be appropriately labeled using arrow notation. You can specify names for individual values to be dumped if you use the "Dump()" method, or you can change the default $VAR prefix to something else. See $Data::Dumper::Varname and $Data::Dumper::Terse below.

The default output of self-referential structures can be "eval"ed, but the nested references to $VAR*n* will be undefined, since a recursive structure cannot be constructed using one Perl statement. You should set the "Purity" flag to 1 to get additional statements that will correctly fill in these references. Moreover, if "eval"ed when strictures are in effect, you need to ensure that any variables it accesses are previously declared.

In the extended usage form, the references to be dumped can be given user-specified names. If a name begins with a "*", the output will describe the dereferenced type of the supplied reference for hashes and arrays, and coderefs. Output of names will be avoided where possible if the "Terse" flag is set.

In many cases, methods that are used to set the internal state of the object will return the object itself, so method calls can be conveniently chained together.

Several styles of output are possible, all controlled by setting the "Indent" flag. See "Configuration Variables or Methods" below for details.